Molecular detection and genetic diversity of Rickettsia spp. in pet dogs and their infesting ticks in Harbin, northeastern China

Abstract

Background Pet dogs are important companion animals that share the environment within households, and play an important role in local community life. In addition, pet dogs also are reservoirs of zoonotic agents, including Rickettsia spp., thus increasing the risk of rickettsial infections in humans. It’s meaningful to investigate the epidemiology of rickettsial agents in pet dogs, and make contribute to the surveillance of rickettsioses in human in China. Results In this study, a total of 496 pet dogs’ blood samples and 343 ticks infested in pet dogs were collected, and the presence and prevalence of Rickettsia were determined by amplifying the partial gltA and 17-kDa genes, with an overall positive rate of 8.1 % in blood samples and 14.0 % in tick samples. In addition, the rrs, gltA, groEL, and ompA genes of rickettsial were also recovered to determine the species of Rickettsia detected furtherly. Sequencing blast and phylogenetic analyses revealed the presence of three human pathogenic Rickettsia species (Rickettsia raoultii, Candidatus Rickettsia tarasevichiae and Rickettsia felis) in samples associated with pet dogs. Moreover, all the sequences of Rickettsia that we obtained presented close relationship with others available in GenBank, and Rickettsia raoultii was the most predominant Rickettsia species infected in pet dogs’ blood samples or in tick samples. Conclusions This study provides the molecular epidemiology data about the Rickettsia spp. infection associated with pet dogs in urban areas of Harbin city. Three rickettisae species pathogenic to humans were identified from pet dogs’ blood and the infested ticks in urban areas of Harbin city. Considering the intimate relationship between human and pets, these results indicate the potential transmission risk of human rickettisal infections from pet dogs through ectoparasites, and also highlighting that more attention should be paid to rickettsial infection in pet dogs and the infested ticks from the “One health” perspective.

Genotyping of ticks: first molecular report of Hyalomma asiaticum and molecular detection of tick-borne bacteria in ticks and blood from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

“…The results of our investigation confirmed the presence of Rickettsiales DNA in the investigated tick species, and it is worth noting that this kind of bacterial DNA has been previously detected in other tick species globally ( Yang et al., 2016 ; Shao et al., 2021 ; Hu et al., 2022 ; Ali et al., 2023b ). More specifically, the Ca.…”

The Role of Ranged Horses in Eco-Epidemiology of Rickettsia raoultii Infection in China

“…All of these animals may serve as reservoir hosts for R. raoultii ; however, experimental evidence is still lacking. Additionally, R. raoultii has been detected in squirrels, marbled polecats, red foxes, hedgehogs, yaks, camels and other wild mammals in China ( Liu et al, 2018 , 2021 ; Zhao et al, 2019 ; Li et al, 2020 ; Fang et al, 2021 ; Shao et al, 2021 ). Furthermore, there is a highly significant association of horse contact with tick-borne lymphadenopathy, the pathogens of which are R. slovaca and R. raoultii ( Lakos et al, 2012 ).…”

Genetic diversity of vector-borne zoonotic pathogens in companion dogs and cats, Tianjin, China

“…In China, more than 20 Rickettsia species have been identified among diverse ticks ( 41 ) as hosts of ticks, dogs, and cats are naturally at risk for rickettsial infection. To date, several investigations have been performed, and at least six Rickettsia species, R. felis ( 13 , 14 ), R. massiliae , Candidatus R. barbariae ( 15 ), R. conorii ( 16 ), R. raoultii , and Candidatus R. tarasevichiae ( 13 ) have been identified in dogs. In addition, the positive rate of Rickettsia infection in dogs ranged from 0.8 to 8.0%.…”

“…In China, limited studies have been performed to determine the presence of vector-borne zoonotic pathogens in companion cats and dogs. Regarding SFGR, Rickettsia felis ( 13 , 14 ), Rickettsia massiliae ( 15 ), Rickettsia conorii ( 16 ), Rickettsia raoultii , and Candidatus Rickettsia tarasevichiae ( 13 ) have been identified in dogs. Regarding Bartonella , Bar.…”